This invention relates generally to an agricultural pickup assembly having tines passing within tine guards and, more particularly, to a pickup tine guide having an improved mounting to the tine guards.
Pick-up assemblies used in agricultural harvesting machines typically include a reel that is rotatable about a horizontal central axis. The reel comprises a plurality of parallel tine bars arranged for movement in a generally circular path around the central axis. Individual tines are connected to the bars and extend generally radially outwardly to lift crop material from the ground and convey it into a crop processing mechanism. The tine bars are connected to a central shaft by end plates, and as the reel rotates, the tines project through spaces or gaps formed between tine guards arranged side-by-side transversely of the reel. These tine guards are individually secured at their top and bottom ends to support members on the pickup.
The tine bars may be individually rotated dependent upon the reel rotational position varying the position of the tines relative to the reel rotational position, such as for folding the tines inwardly at a upper position in the rotation to release the crop material for feed into the machine. Cams within the pick-up assembly rotate the tine bars to control the tine position. As the tine releases crop at the top of its rotational path, the tine is retracted to fold down between the tine reel and the frame. Tines ideally move in a plane that is generally perpendicular to the tine reel rotational centerline in order to pass cleanly through the spaces in the tine guards. Tines that are bent tend to protrude out of this plane and into the space for adjacent tines. As bent tines pass through the tine guard spaces, the tines contact the edges openings in the tine guards causing wear on the tines and tine guards, and making the tine more susceptible to further bending. Repeated flexing of tines to pass through the tine guard openings also accelerates tine breakage. Once retracted within the pick-up assembly, bent tines may encroach the space of adjacent tines and even overlap adjacent tines and at which point the tines are no longer functional for moving crop material.
Some pick-up assemblies include divider plates welded in place to separate the travel paths of the tines as they rotate through the pick-up assembly. The divider plates prevent tine overlap within the pick-up assembly and the resultant wear, but limit production flexibility since some customers prefer pick-up assemblies without divider plates installed.
It would be advantageous to provide a removable pick-up assembly tine divider plate that could be selectively installed on a common pick-up assembly thereby enabling divider plates to be offered as an optional feature on a common pick-up assembly. Additional advantages would be realized by a tine divider plate that is trapped in place by design to eliminate the need for additional fastening hardware to secure the divider plate to the pick-up assembly. Further advantages would be realized if the removable tine divider could be easily replaced when excessively worn by contact with bent tines. Still further advantages would be provided by a tine divider plate incorporating an additional wear surface to protect tine guards from wear caused by bent tines. By providing a replaceable additional wear surface to protect the tine guards, the useful life of the pick-up assembly can be increased by reducing wear on the tine guard structure itself.